** Browser Crashed so this post is a previous draft I wrote way more and it got deleted **
Free software draft
Introduction
Definitions
Free software means free as in freedom not as in beer.
https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html
It is open, and should be a human right just like privacy has just become.
Free software is distinguished from open source which means that software should have it’s sources available. However Free software gives the four free freedoms:
run, study, distribute, and distribute with modifications.
3rd party reviews
It is recognized as crucial by UNESCO and the UN.
History
The free software movement was started in 1980s when Richard Stallman who didn’t like the the direction of the hacker and computer industry.
About this blog
This blog is written in almost fully free software.
I am using a Trisquel GNU/Linux Distribution that is fully free software.
I use the Tor browser which keeps my browsing anonymous and secure.
I use extensions such as libreJS and privacy badger and HTTPS everywhere so that I can write this blog securely.
I use the free software wordpress blogging platform, hosted by an activist organization that uses free software.
The Gnome desktop environment makes these tasks easier.
The wifi may not work because it involves proprietary software so I use a wireless usb adapter from a free software organization to connect to the internet.
Other Connections
Free hardware is also an important connect to free software, but it hasn’t gained as much support. free software also has been linked to the economic solidarity movement because it is interested in building a world that respects it’s users.
Free Education
I am interested in how FLOSS (free libre open source software) relates to education. I am currently a student so it is a practical issue. Schools may use free software but they may not know it really is free software or why that’s important.
To my knowledge there does not exist any live colleges that teach exclusively free software using free software. There are however free software courses and programs and some online schools that try to bridge the gap. Another alternative is to this is to start our own school using free software or to try to complete the coursework using a free software project.
There are schools that teach free open courses like Khan Academy and coursera, but they are not fully free software hosting media on Youtube, sending your data to many third parties for data analysis and some require an account to do so and make it difficult for those who are trying to achieve anonymity by using tor.
There is a link on the GNU website which lists the use cases of FLOSS in education in Arizona and India that seems interesting. However as I reside in the US they would be difficult to attend.
https://www.gnu.org/education/edu-cases.html#mission-statement
The One laptop per child campaign has been a success and largely used free software, but now a lot of Microsoft software is used.
Other cases are listed on the libreplanet website
https://libreplanet.org/wiki/Gnu_education#Free_Software_and_Other_Education_Resources
There is the Rochester institute of technology which is a private school offering a minors in free software, but this is just a minor and the school is very expensive (40k/yr).
http://magic.rit.edu/foss/minor.html
There is the Free Technology Academy Online
Free Technology Academy Online
http://ftacademy.org/
which offers libre courses and a masters program which is something to look forward to. It is not free as in libre and is a online school. However, the program looks very interesting and they offer some of the materials for free as in price as well as free as in freedom.
There is the Sugar Labs educational environment for children that provides a home office software alternative
https://www.sugarlabs.org/
Someone wrote a good article on libreplanet like this one arguing for free software in regards to a campaign to get proprietary iPads. He argued that he saw iPad adoption as vendor lock-in of his peers, a wasteful expense, argued that free software can help users to learn computers better because they can see the code. He also warned that by giving discounts students get hooked on proprietary software. Not only this, but he argued that since education models how we live in society, it can produce citizens with more secure identities and machines and create better workers who can adapt to different technologies.
https://libreplanet.org/wiki/Free_Software_in_schools
What is the state of things?
The upcoming LibrePlanet 2015 should address some of these issues:
A speaker on the OLPC success, one on K-12 free software, and open data, but not necessarily tertiary education.
The true story is that free software is such a powerful tool but it is not universally adopted yet. As such, currently there are few employers who want to hire someone who is for example a gimp artist unless they are working for the free software foundation , GNU, or other free software activist organizations.
Ambivalence
Sometimes it can make you wonder why education is important, or at least how the schools teach it in America. In fact because school has a big impact on education, just as easily it can teach you bad habits. Our society and the computer industry has not been going in the right direction too with the growing power of apple and Microsoft even after it was exposed of all their wrongdoings.
What I am doing to change this
-GNU CLUB
I have started a gnu/linux club at my school that introduces people to free software, what it is, why it is important and how it can be profitable and ethical at the same time. I primarily hold workshops on free software, particularly security like cryptoparty workshops. I held a table on why surveillance is not compatible with democracy. I have had about 8 workshops so far, installed 2 tails usbs, 2 tails CDs, taught about tor, tails, gnu/linux distros like debian (with only free repos) and trisquel. I have campaigned for my teachers, especially in programming to offer courses using free software and teaching free software.
-This blog
From now on I will focus alot of the blog from about social justice issues to digital justice issues like free software starting with this blog post.
-INTRO TO C#
I am focusing on the course Introduction to Programming with C#.
https://libreplanet.org/wiki/Free_Software_in_schools
